Mental Health Consultation Training Institute
During the 2010-2011 Academic Year, the Hume Center partnered with one school district to pilot a training in Mental Health Consultation to school counselors as part of their professional development. Participants were assisted to develop strategies to address school issues such as suicide postvention. In addition, the development of consultation skills for use with caregivers and educators through participation in peer consultation provided them with appropriate maintenance skills so the staff would be robust enough to cope with the pressures impinging upon their school communities. The model enriched the staff's capacity to continue to contribute to improved outcomes for behaviors that they had identified as priorities.
Based on the results of this pilot program, Alameda County Health Care Services announced they would award funding for the development of a Mental Health Consultation Training Institute (MHCTI) for multiple regions of the County. The Hume Center is honored to have been selected to provide such a service in the Tri-City and Tri-Valley regions.
Mental Health Consultation Training Institute Program
The institute's program employed a mix of didactic and participatory as well as group and individual instructional modalities that enhanced learning more deeply than would have been possible with a more traditional, teacher/student learning model. Training time was allotted to mental health consultation theory, practical experience, and case presentation by participants. Each participant had opportunities to meet with a trainer one-on-one, effectively emulating how the participant interacts with a member of the school staff or a parent when providing mental health consultation services. This pilot training program was a great success and was eventually sunsetted as planned.